Manitou Springs Haunted Places

Manitou Springs is a stunning and small community that's rich in history, legends and ghost stories. It's no wonder people travel from all over for paranormal experiences. Have your own ghostly tales to tell after visiting one of these famously haunted houses in Colorado- if you dare.

Red Chief Mountain

This site, in Manitou Springs, sits at 7,300+ feet above sea level. Back when tuberculosis was common and sufferers traveled to Manitou Springs seeking the healing springs and mountain air, Emma Crawford made her trip for a cure as well. Alas, she died at the tender age of 19. Her last wish was to be buried on the summit of nearby Red Mountain. Her fiancée, along with 11 other men, obliged and carried her remains to the summit for burial. After years of stormy weather and erosion, her remains washed down the side of the mountain. Because of this unsettling upheaval, many still believe that Emma haunts the mountain today; some have even seen her. There are trails on the side of the mountain to visit the site of her grave. A stop in the Manitou Springs haunted Cemetery will show an unmarked grave in remembrance of Emma. Annual coffin races are held in her honor down Manitou Avenue every October.

Briarhurst Manor Estate

This historic Inn was the home of Dr. Bell and his family in 1874 during the dark plague of tuberculosis in the area. Many who suffered from the disease traveled to Manitou Springs to seek the healing powers of the springs themselves. Briarhurst was the Bell's summer home until 1922. Later the Manor was purchased and turned into a fine-dining establishment. Today the paranormal activity is intense. The Briarhurst was so active that the Atlantic Paranormal Society from SyFy Channel's show Ghost Hunters investigated the property with plenty of things to air on for a 2009 episode. Find out for yourself if this historic inn is as scary as it appears. Cameras are encouraged but any unusual findings must be shared!

The Cave of the Winds in Williams Canyon north of Manitou Springs has been a visitor attraction since 1881. Before then, the Native American people who frequented the mineral springs at Manitou knew of the open gorge that holds the cave's main entrance. The Jicarilla Apaches in New Mexico reported in 1960 that they believe the Cave of the Winds is home to the Great Spirit of the Wind, and that anyone entering the cave could become twisted in both body and mind by the twisting movement of the wind passing through the open gorge. Only the bravest tribe members will enter the cave's entrance chamber. The reopening of the historic Manitou Grand Caverns section - closed to visitors from 1907 until 1980 - to public lantern tours has resulted in numerous reports by staff, visitors and cave explorers of spooky happenings. In the Grand Concert Hall, the largest chamber in the known cave system, and nearby Lover's Lane, visitors have reported apparitions, strange mists, unexplained sounds and unusual lights in photographs. Staff in the historic early 220th-centurygift shop on the rim of Williams Canyon have noted unusual and unexplained events, including phones ringing from unattached extensions, intercom calls from within the Cave of the Winds when no one is inside, and items moved or missing. Management has invited several paranormal teams to investigate the cave in the last decade, who have used a variety of methods to investigate. One paranormal sensitive reported the spirit of the cave's 19th century developer and owner spends time in the Grand Concert Hall, watching tour groups. The Manitou Grand Caverns was featured in an 2012 episode of the Biography Channel series, "My Ghost Story," detailing one paranormal investigation by The Spirit Chasers.

Owner Gwenn Davis attests to weird happenings include lights and flashlights going on and off and paranormal investigators saying that the lodge is haunted by a few children as well as to a coachmen who once resided there.